System and method for an extendable mobile communications device user interface

ABSTRACT

A system and method for an extendable software interface includes a software architecture for use in a mobile device having a processor and a memory device. The software architecture includes a set of first-order controller software instructions configured to interface the application program with a first-order data model, and a first-order data object stored in the memory device in the form of the first-order data model. The first-order data object includes a second-order data object. A second-order set of controller software instructions configured to interact with the second-order data object is also included in the software architecture.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/237,010, filed on Sep. 28, 2005, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 09/897207, filed on Jul. 2, 2001, (now U.S.Pat. No. 6,990,672), which claimed priority from U.S. Provisionalapplication No. 60/215,605, filed Jun. 30, 2000. These priorapplications, including their entire written descriptions and drawingfigures, are hereby incorporated into the present application byreference.

BACKGROUND 1. Field Of The Invention

This invention relates generally to a software interface for a mobiledevice. More particularly, the invention provides an extendable softwareinterface enabling forward compatibility in a mobile device, such thatnew applications may be easily integrated into the mobile device. Thisinvention is particularly well-suited for use in Personal DigitalAssistants, mobile communication devices, cellular phones, and wirelesstwo-way email communication devices (collectively referred to herein as“mobile devices”).

2. Description Of The Related Art

Typical mobile device interfaces are constrained by resource limitationson the mobile device as compared to those of a desktop system. As aresult of these constraints, known mobile device interfaces aregenerally either hard-wired or hard-coded. In either case, the knownmobile device interfaces are immutable once the mobile device has beenmanufactured. For instance, in a hard-wired mobile device, physicalcomponents, such as push buttons and displays, are generally integratedinto a user interface by control logic wired into a printed circuitboard. Consequently, a hard-wired mobile device is not capable of beingupgraded to support new applications. In a hard-coded mobile device, aprogrammable device is typically used for the control logic, and theuser interface is generally controlled by the firmware and/or operatingsystem of the mobile device. New applications can generally be added toa hard-coded mobile device, but this process typically involvesreplacing or upgrading the interface software, which often involves arisk of breaking compatibility with legacy features of the mobiledevice. In addition, neither hard-wired nor hard-coded mobile devicestypically allow a user to seamlessly interface between an applicationprogram and data types associated with other application programs.

SUMMARY

A system and method for an extendable software interface includes asoftware architecture for use in a mobile device having a processor anda memory device. The software architecture comprises a plurality ofapplication programs stored in the memory device and executed by theprocessor, and at least one controller module for interfacing theplurality of application programs with a data model configured tointeract with a particular type of data object. Each controller moduleutilizes one or more generic interfaces with the plurality ofapplication programs, and also utilizes a specific interface with thedata model.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a mobile device with an exemplaryextendable software interface;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the interaction between fourexemplary controllers and four exemplary data models;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating that multiple controllers havinggeneric interfaces can each interact with the same application program;

FIG. 4. is a block diagram illustrating that controllers are singletonseach capable of interfacing with multiple data modules of the same type;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating exemplary second-ordercontrollers and second-order data models;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an alternative embodiment in whichsecond-order objects are accessed with second-order controllers and afirst-order data model;

FIG. 7 illustrates an implementation of the extendable softwareinterface that adds functionality to an e-mail message application;

FIG. 8 illustrates an implementation of the extendable softwareinterface that adds third-party stock brokerage functions to the e-mailmessage application; and

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram showing an exemplary method for addingfunctionality to an application operating on a mobile device byutilizing the extendable software interface.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawing figures, FIG. 1 is a block diagram showinga mobile device 10 with an exemplary extendable software interface. Themobile device comprises a processor 12 coupled to a system memory 14, aninput device 20, a display 22, and a transceiver 24. Within the systemmemory 16 is an operating system 26 that includes a virtual machine 28.The virtual machine 28 operates using two types of software modules,controllers 30 and data models 32, that interface with applicationprograms 34 through a plurality of generic interfaces 18.

Operationally, the software interface of the mobile device 10 isextended using the software modules 30 and 32, and the genericinterfaces 18. The software modules 30 and 32 are executed by thevirtual machine 28, which is preferably an object oriented run-timeenvironment such as Sun Micro System's J2ME (JAVA® 2 Micro Edition). Thesoftware modules 30 and 32 are preferably constructed using a JAVA®compiler capable of enforcing a software application interoperationarchitecture that takes on the form of a collection of compiled classesand objects along with an application programming interface (API).

Data models 32 are classes that represent the various types of datastored on the mobile device 10. The types of data may include, forexample, e-mail messages, address book entries, calendar items, tasks,and memos. In addition, next-generation mobile devices may store datasuch as SMS messages, phone call logs, voice mail indicators, WAPrequests, multiple e-mail sources, HTML content exchanges, specializedbanking services, financial services, field server and customer serviceofferings, or downloads from corporate databases.

The data models 32 are preferably stored on the mobile device 10 in theform of Java objects for execution in the J2ME run time environment.Each data model 32 is designed for a particular type of data object, andincludes specialized functions for retrieving information associatedwith the data type. For example, an e-mail message model may havespecialized functions for retrieving the subject of the e-mail objectand for retrieving the body of the e-mail object. A calendar entrymodel, on the other hand, may include specialized functions specific toa calendar entry object, such as a function capable of retrieving theduration of an appointment.

Each type of data model 32 has an associated controller 30 capable ofinteracting with the specific functions of the data model 32 type andrepresenting the data model 32 in a uniform way to the rest of thesoftware interface system. Operationally, the controllers 30 isolate thedata models 32 from the generic interfaces 18, and implement the genericinterfaces 18 such that each controller 30 can be easily hosted by anyapplication program 34 that supports the generic interfaces 18. In thismanner, the controllers 30 present a common, standard interface to anyapplication 34; and each application that supports the genericinterfaces 18 is able to interact with any arbitrary controller 30. Forexample, an e-mail application using one or more of the genericinterfaces 18 can interface with an address book controller to retrievean e-mail address from an address book data model. Moreover, existingcontrollers 30 can be used to interface with any new applicationssupporting the generic interfaces 18. In this manner, a mobile deviceuser is able to install new applications without having to upgrade hisor her operating system 26 or interface software 28. The flexibilityprovided by the interoperability of the controllers 30 may also enablethe mobile device user to expand the functionality of his or her mobiledevice 10 by interacting with third party applications, such as bankingor other commercial services.

The interaction between an application program 34 and any arbitrarycontroller 30 is primarily made possible by generic interfaces 18 thatare implemented each controller 30. The generic interfaces 18 aregeneric in the sense that they are object-oriented as opposed to beingspecific to a certain type of data. Put another way, each genericinterface 18 is preferably programmed to perform a certain operationregardless of the data type. Operationally, each application 34 ispreferably programmed to query any controller 30 to determine if thecontroller 30 supports one or more generic interfaces 18 required toperform a given operation. If so, the application 34 then interacts withthe controller 30 and its associated data model 32 to complete theoperation. For instance, an application 34 may query a controller 30 todetermine whether it supports a generic interface 18 capable of paintingan object (such as the body of an e-mail message) onto a screen, and ifso, then interface with an controller 30 to display the object. In thismanner, the same type of generic interface 18 that is used by anapplication 34 to display the body of an e-mail message could also beused, for example, to display a clipping from a lengthy SMS message. Inanother example, the same generic interface 18 used to display thee-mail message may also be used to receive an e-mail address from ane-mail controller and interface with an address book application topaint the address into an address file. Preferably, new controllerscould also be implemented that support new generic interfaces.Therefore, new controllers can easily be designed to interface withupgraded applications supporting new functions, and still be compatiblewith older applications as long as the new controller includes the oldergeneric interfaces.

Three exemplary generic interfaces that may be implemented by acontroller 30 are briefly described below. It should be understood,however, that these are just a few examples of the many types of genericinterfaces that could be used within the system shown in FIG. 1.

-   1. PaintProvider-The Paint Provider interface supports painting a    data model 32 into a given region of an application program 34. For    example, this generic interface 18 could be used to instruct a    controller to paint a data model into a list view. The PaintProvider    interface may be implemented as follows:

public interface PaintProvider {  void paint(Object model, Graphics g,int x, int y,  int width, int height, Object context); }

-   2. FieldProvider-The FieldProvider interface enables a controller 30    to provide an application program 34 with a read-only or editable    field from a data model 32. For instance, the FieldProvider    interface may enable a data model 32 to be displayed in a list of    fields, such as in the edit screen of an email message. The    FieldProvider interface may be implemented as follows:

public interface FieldProvider {  Field getField(Object model, Objectcontext) throws   NoFieldException;  void grabDataFromField(Objectmodel, Field field); }

-   3. VerbProvider-The VerbProvider interface enables a controller 30    to supply an array of “verbs” when a user selects an object    associated with a data model 32. For instance, when a user positions    a cursor over an object (such as a portion of text) associated with    a particular data model, the VerbProvider interface may display a    list of menu selections specific to that data model. The    VerbProvider interface may be implemented as follows:

public interface VerbProvider { Verb [ ] getVerbs(Object model, Objectcontext); Verb [ ] getDefaultVerb(Object model, Object context); }

FIG. 2 is a block diagram 40 illustrating the interaction between fourexemplary controllers 42, 44, 46 and 48, and four exemplary data models52, 54, 56 and 58. The exemplary controllers shown in the diagram 40include an e-mail message controller 42, an SMS message controller 44,an address book card controller 46, and a calendar entry controller 48.Each exemplary controller 42, 44, 46, and 48 is unique to a data modeltype; respectively shown in the diagram 40 as an e-mail message 52, aSMS message 54, an address book card 56, and a calendar entry 58. Theuniqueness of the controllers and their corresponding data models isillustrated by the varying shapes at the interface between eachexemplary controller 42, 44, 46, and 48 and data model 52, 54, 56, and58. In addition, each exemplary controller 42, 44, 46, and 48 includesthree generic interfaces: Interface A 60, Interface B 62, and InterfaceC 64. Although every controller 42, 44, 46, and 48 is unique to a datamodel 52, 54, 56, and 58, the same generic interfaces 60, 62 and 64 areimplemented universally throughout the software interface. Therefore, asdiscussed above with reference to FIG. 1, each exemplary controller 42,44, 46, and 48 is able to interface with any application program thatsupports the generic interfaces 60, 62 and 64.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram 70 illustrating that multiple controllers 72,74, 76 and 78 having generic interfaces 80, 82, and 84 can each interactwith the same application program 86. For example, FIG. 3 shows ane-mail message controller 72, an SMS message controller 74, a voice mailindicator controller 76, and a third-party supplied controller 78. Eachcontroller 72, 74, 76 and 78 includes the same three generic interfaces80, 82 and 84, and thus all four controllers 72, 74, 76 and 78 are ableto interact with the same application 86. In this manner, the interfacesoftware 28 remains consistent regardless of the data type beingaccessed. In addition, FIG. 3 demonstrates that a third-party may easilydesign a new controller 78 that is compatible with the existing softwareinterface system by including the generic interfaces 80, 82 and 84supported by the application program 86 and other applications on thesystem.

FIG. 4. is a block diagram 90 illustrating that controllers 92, 94, and96 are singletons each capable of interfacing with multiple data modelsof the same type. As data entries or messages are received into thesystem, they are preferably entered into a persisted list of dataobjects that is included in, or assessable to, each application program34. The persisted list should preferably identify a data model for eachdata object in the list. Since the same type of data model may often beassociated with multiple data objects in the list, multiple instances ofvarious data model software modules could be executing in the system atthe same time. This is illustrated in FIG. 4 by the multiple instancesof the e-mail message data models 98 and 100, the SMS message datamodels 102 and 104, and the voice mail indicator data models 106 and108.

In a preferred embodiment, however, the persisted list should notidentify a controller 92, 94 or 96 for each data object. Rather, theappropriate controller 92, 94 or 96 is preferably identified as someaction is taken with a data model 98, 100, 102, 104, 106 or 108. When anapplication 34 needs to access a data model, the application 34preferably (1) queries the data model for the correct controller, (2)calls the controller, and then (3) passes in the data model as the firstparameter. In this manner, the controllers 92, 94 and 96 are statelessobjects such that only one instance of a controller 92, 94 or 96 iscapable of handling all of the data models of a certain type that areexecuting in the system. For example, in FIG. 4 one instance of ane-mail message controller 92 interfaces with both instances of thee-mail message data model 98 and 100.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram 200 illustrating exemplary second-ordercontrollers 210, 212 and 214 and second-order data models 218, 220 and222. The controllers and data models illustrated in FIGS. 2-3 areexamples of software modules designed to interface with first orderobjects, such as an e-mail message, an address book entry or a calendaritem. In a preferred embodiment, however, the extendable softwareinterface is also capable of interfacing with multiple objects within afirst-order object, referred to herein as second-order objects. Anexample of a second-order object is an address that appears within thebody of an e-mail message. In order to interface with a second-orderobject, the extendable software interface preferably utilizessecond-order controllers that operate within a first-order controller.For instance, in FIG. 5 four second-order controllers 210, 212 and 214are shown within an e-mail message controller 226. Each of thesecond-order controllers 210, 212 and 214 are preferably programmed toaccess a particular type of second-order object. FIG. 5 shows oneexemplary method by which a second-order controller may access asecond-order object. In this embodiment, a second-order data model 218,220 or 222 is created for each type of second-order object. Thesecond-order data models 218, 220 and 222 preferably operate within afirst-order data model 228. In this manner, each second-order data model218, 220 or 222 is programmed to access a particular type of informationwithin a data type, thus enabling a second-order object to bemanipulated by an application program 34 through the second-ordercontrollers 210, 212 and 214. Examples illustrating the manipulation ofsecond-order objects are detailed below with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an alternative embodiment 300 in whichsecond-order objects are accessed with second-order controllers 302, 304and 306 and a first-order data model 310. In this embodiment, thefirst-order data object is grouped by the virtual machine 28 in such away that second-order data objects can be identified from within thefirst-order data model 310. This may be accomplished, for example, bygrouping a first order data object that includes multiple second-orderdata objects such that they appear to the system as essentially oneimmutable object. When the group is accessed by the virtual machine 28,however, each of the sub-pieces (second-order objects) of the group canbe independently accessed. The second-order controllers 302, 304 and 306are then programmed to identify the second-order data objects fromwithin the data object grouping. In this manner, memory space on thesystem can be better utilized by eliminating the need for second-orderdata models.

FIG. 7 illustrates an implementation of the extendable softwareinterface that adds functionality to an e-mail message application. Inthe embodiment shown in FIG. 7, any e-mail addresses that appear in anyportion of an e-mail message 400 are action-linked. This may beaccomplished, for example, by designing an e-mail message controllercapable of (1) recognizing e-mail addresses as second-order objects, and(2) delegating the interface between the e-mail message application andthe e-mail address to an object-specific, second-order e-mail addresscontroller operating within the e-mail controller. The e-mail addresscontroller should preferably be capable of retrieving e-mail addresses410 from a first-order e-mail message model. Alternatively, specializedsecond-order e-mail address models may be constructed to operate withinthe e-mail message model and interact with the e-mail addresscontroller. In either case, by defining e-mail addresses 410 assecond-order objects, and designing interface software modules capableof retrieving the addresses 410 from within any portion of an e-mailmessage 400, an existing e-mail application is extended such that it canperform previously unavailable operations.

For instance, with reference to FIG. 7, when a mobile device userpositions a cursor in the vicinity of the e-mail address“ulf@bigcompany.com” 410, the e-mail message controller preferablyrecognizes that the address 410 is a second-order object and calls thespecialized second-order e-mail address controller. Through one of thegeneric interfaces, the e-mail address controller then preferablypresents a list of functions 412 on a display of the device that can beperformed on the e-mail address 410. In addition, the function list 412may preferably include operations involving other applications. Forexample, the function “Add Ulf to address book” may require the e-mailaddress controller to interface with an address book application. Thisseamless operation is possible because the generic interfaces enable thee-mail address controller to interface with any application within thesystem.

FIG. 8 illustrates an implementation of the extendable softwareinterface that adds third-party stock brokerage functions 500 to thee-mail message application. In this example, an e-mail message 510 sentfrom a stock broker includes action-linked stock quotations 512. Inorder to implement this example, the mobile device manufacturer, orpreferably the third party, may design an e-mail message controllerupgrade that adds second-order controllers that are specific to dataobjects typically found in an e-mail from a stock broker. With referenceto the illustration, when a user positions a cursor in the vicinity of astock quote or ticker symbol 512 in the e-mail message 510, the upgradede-mail controller preferably (1) recognizes the quote or symbol 512 as asecond-order object and (2) calls the object-specific second-ordercontroller. The second-order controller then preferably presents a listof functions 500 to the e-mail message application that are capable ofbeing performed on the object 512. In this example, the availablefunctions are “SELL,” BUY,” “Request more info,” and “Cancel.” If, forexample, the user selects the “SELL” function from the list 500, thenthe second-order controller may be programmed to (1) instruct the e-mailapplication to create a new e-mail message, (2) paint the address“stocks@tdbank.com” into the receiver line (the “To:” line) of the newmessage, (3) paint the address “MGeek@rim.net” into the sender line (the“From:” line) of the new message, and (4) paint the text “SELL” alongwith the second-order object “ALCN. TO 12.33-122.21” into the bodyportion of the new message. Significantly, none of these steps requirean upgrade to the e-mail message application. Rather, the extendablesoftware interface preferably enables additional functionality to beadded to an existing application with only a simple upgrade to theapplication's controller.

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram showing an exemplary method 600 for addingfunctionality to an application operating on a mobile device byutilizing the extendable software interface. In step 610, one or moresecond-order objects are defined within the first-order data modelassociated with the application. For instance, in an e-mail message datamodel, second-order objects may be defined as described above withreference to FIGS. 7 and 8. It should be understood, however, that thismethod 600 is not limited to an e-mail messaging application, but may beutilized with any application operating on a mobile device. In step 620,the application data model containing the second-order objects isdisplayed by the application. As discussed above with reference to FIG.1, the data model is preferably accessed by the application throughgeneric interfaces and a first-order controller. Once the data isdisplayed, a mobile device user may preferably select a second-orderobject by positioning a cursor on, or in the vicinity of, thesecond-order object (step 630). Alternatively, the second-order objectmay be selected by any other means available on the mobile device, suchas highlighting the object or touching the object with a stylus. When asecond-order object is selected by the user, the first-order controllerpreferably (1) recognizes the object as a second-order object, and (2)calls a second-order controller that is specifically designed to accessthe second-order object (step 640).

In step 650, the second-order controller preferably provides a list offunctions that may be performed on the second-order object. Once afunction associated with a second-order object has been selected by themobile device user (step 660), the second-order controller preferablyestablishes whether the function (1) relates to the current application,or (2) requires access to another application installed on the mobiledevice (step 670). For instance, if an address is selected as asecond-order object within an e-mail message, then the user may be giventhe option to (1) insert the address into the “To:” line of a newmessage, or (2) insert the address into an address book. If the userchooses to compose a new message using the selected address in the “To:”line, then the second-order (address) controller preferably knows thatthe selected operation relates to the e-mail messaging application thatis already executing. Then, the first and second-order controllers mayinterface with the currently executing application to perform theselected function (step 700). If, however, the user chooses to insertthe object into an address book file, then the e-mail message controllerand second-order address controller need access to an address bookapplication before the function can be completed. Therefore, whenanother application installed on the mobile device is required toperform the selected function, the new application is preferablylaunched by either the first or second-order controller (step 680).Then, because the first and second-order applications utilize genericinterfaces, both can interface with the new application to perform theselected function (steps 690 and 700).

The embodiments described herein are examples of structures, systems ormethods having elements corresponding to the elements of the inventionrecited in the claims. This written description may enable those skilledin the art to make and use embodiments having alternative elements thatlikewise correspond to the elements of the invention recited in theclaims. The intended scope of the invention thus includes otherstructures, systems or methods that do not differ from the literallanguage of the claims, and further includes other structures, systemsor methods with insubstantial differences from the literal language ofthe claims.

1. A method of providing functionality on a mobile device having adisplay, comprising: receiving at the mobile device an electronicmessage with an e-mail address within a body of the electronic message;displaying on the display at least a portion of the electronic message;and in response to a selection of the e-mail address, displaying on thedisplay a menu list of at least one function that can be performed onthe e-mail address, including adding the e-mail address to an addressbook on the mobile device and creating an e-mail message addressed tothe e-mail address.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronicmessage is an e-mail message.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein theelectronic message is an SMS message.
 4. The method of claim 1, whereinthe at least one function comprises an operation involving anapplication other than a message application.
 5. The method of claim 1,wherein the at least one function comprises an operation involving anaddress book application.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein thereceiving at the mobile device the selection of the e-mail addresscomprises receiving a cursor positioning over the e-mail address.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising receiving selection of the atleast one function.
 8. The method of claim 7, further comprisinglaunching an application associated with the at least one function.
 9. Amobile communication device, comprising: a display; an input device; anda processor, connected to the display and the input device, andconfigured to receive an electronic message with an e-mail addresswithin a body of the electronic message, display on the display at leasta portion of the electronic message, and in response to a selection ofthe e-mail address at the input device, display on the display a menulist of at least one function that can be performed on the e-mailaddress, including adding the e-mail address to an address book on themobile device and creating an e-mail message addressed to the e-mailaddress.
 10. The mobile communication device of claim 9, wherein theelectronic message is an e-mail message.
 11. The mobile communicationdevice of claim 9, wherein the electronic message is an SMS message. 12.The mobile communication device of claim 9, wherein the at least onefunction comprises an operation involving an application other than amessage application.
 13. The mobile communication device of claim 9,wherein the at least one function comprises an operation involving anaddress book application.
 14. The mobile communication device of claim9, wherein the receiving the selection of the e-mail address comprisesreceiving a cursor positioning over the e-mail address.
 15. The mobilecommunication device of claim 9, further comprising the processorconfigured to receive selection of the at least one function.
 16. Themobile communication device of claim 15, further comprising theprocessor configured to launch an application associated with the atleast one function.
 17. A method of providing functionality on a mobiledevice having a display, comprising: receiving at the mobile device anelectronic message with an e-mail address within a body of theelectronic message; displaying on the display at least a portion of theelectronic message; and in response to a selection of the e-mailaddress, displaying on the display a menu list at least one functionthat can be performed on the e-mail address.
 18. A mobile communicationdevice, comprising: a display; an input device; and a processor,connected to the display and the input device, and configured to receivean electronic message with an e-mail address within a body of theelectronic message, display on the display at least a portion of theelectronic message, and in response to a selection of the e-mail addressat the input device, display on the display a menu list of at least onefunction that can be performed on the e-mail address.
 19. A method ofproviding functionality on a mobile device having a display, comprising:receiving at the mobile device an electronic message with an e-mailaddress within a body of the electronic message; displaying on thedisplay at least a portion of the electronic message; and in response toa selection of the e-mail address, displaying on the display adescription of at least one function that can be performed on the e-mailaddress.
 20. A mobile communication device, comprising: a display; aninput device; and a processor, connected to the display and the inputdevice, and configured to receive an electronic message with an e-mailaddress within a body of the electronic message, display on the displayat least a portion of the electronic message, and in response to aselection of the e-mail address at the input device, display on thedisplay a description of at least one function that can be performed onthe e-mail address.